Lost in Translation

My eyes flitted to the corner of the room where my most prized of possessions sat. It was my camera. Next to that were a few records, a few old records that so many people of my day and age were unfamiliar with. I was more into older music than all the trash that was constantly pouring from the radio stations these days.

“Kaylee, get on your uniform before I put it on you myself!” My best friend, Zoe, had pestered me about doing cheer with her since I met her in middle school. I had finally given in when we were in the seventh grade and we have both been on the squad ever since. Now we were juniors in high school.

“Can’t I sit just this one game out? Zoe, I’m exhausted,” I whined, hoping she’d let me out of it. I wasn't tired at all, I was just bored with cheering all the time. It was ironic how un-cheery a cheer leader could be. Then again, maybe I was just different from the rest of the girls on the squad.

“Kaylee Mercedes Gregory!” There was the use of the full name. Who does she think she is? My mother? “There is no way in hell I’m cheering without you.”

“Okay, okay. I was just kidding,” I offered meekly, providing a small smile.

“Then put on your uniform so I can fix your hair.” Zoe was snappy tonight and clearly had something other than cheer on her mind. I decided to wait until after the game to ask her what her deal was.

“There’s nothing wrong with my hair,” I said as I tossed my long blonde hair over my shoulder.

“There’s nothing right with it either, Mercedes." She often called me by my middle name because she was obsessed with it. "We've got to get you looking hot. We’re going to that party afterwards and you can’t just stand around with the other girls this time. Hon, you've got to have some fun.”

“I don’t even want to go to the stupid party,” I whined at her. I stripped down to my bra and underwear and reached for my uniform. My bedroom door swung open and I squealed and wrapped my arms around middle in an effort to cover my mostly naked self. “I’m changing!”

“Kaylee, it’s fine,” Zoe sighed. “It’s just Brandon.”

“I’m not dressed!” I ran over to my door and pushed him out with one hand while closing the door in his face with the other. I pulled on my uniform before another word escaped anyone’s mouth. I opened the door again and stared at the boy.

“Damn, you look almost as hot as you did a few seconds ago,” he winked suggestively at me. I scoffed and rolled my eyes annoyed.

“Zoe, what is this?” I gestured to the boy she had obviously invited to my house.

“Brandon. He’s a boy that’s come to be your date at the party tonight.” She looked beyond excited and my expression of annoyance didn't change that. I was mortified. Sure I’d had my fair share of boyfriends and all that, but I didn't want to get back into that. I didn't even want a date. I shook my head at her, paying Brandon no mind as he snooped around my room. She sighed dramatically and said, “Brandon, we’ll meet you at the party. Get out of here.”

He left without a word.

We left shortly after, with my hair and makeup done nicely as ever.

“Maybe if you wouldn't be so uptight, Kaylee, you would have a boyfriend by now. What’s it been, a month? Two?” Zoe sounded annoyed.

“Well it’s better than sleeping around with a new guy every night!” I said, defensively.

“Is it better?” I rolled my eyes and stared out the window for the remainder of the car ride.

When we arrived in the parking lot Zoe reached over and put her hand on my arm. I looked over at her, and even in the dark I could make out her face. It was full of thought.

“What’s up, Zoe?” I asked, hoping it wasn't anything too big.

“I’m sorry. I shouldn't have thrown the boy at you. I just want you to have fun for once.”

“I know,” I sighed. “I’ll hang out with him tonight, but just for a little while. Thank you, for caring.”

“Yay!” She squealed, tearing open her door and running to the school gym to do one last run-through of our routine before the football game. I had a feeling that Zoe was upset about something else. I would get it out of her before the night was over.

Shaking off the feeling that something was wrong with Zoe, I started to run after her before I was late. However, I didn't get far before I ran head-on into a guy about my age. He had messy, light brown hair and ocean blue eyes. “Oh my god! I'm -” I started to apologize, but he stopped me, cupping his hand over my mouth.

“Shhh!” he hissed, letting a grin play on the corners of his mouth. I pushed his hand away, disgusted that he'd touched my mouth, and took a few steps back cautiously. "I know, I know. You're probably wondering why I'm here," he sighed.

"Yeah, I've never seen you here before,” I started. He gave me a funny look and I added, "look, I'm really sorry but I have to get in there. I'm already late.” He looked at me questioningly and I gestured to my cheer uniform.

He nodded and said, “Well it was nice to meet you...” he let the sentence trail off.

“Kaylee,” I finished for him. I really needed to get inside. Zoe was probably freaking out and thinking I'd bailed on her and my coach was probably furious. I edged closer to the door.

“Well I'd love to see you again sometime, Kaylee.”

“There's actually a party after this game tonight, everyone's invited.” I didn't know why I was telling him any of this, let alone talking to him, but I ran back to Zoe's car and pulled a marker out of the glove box. I wrote my number on the back of his hand. “Text me after the game and I'll tell you where it is. If you want.” I didn't give him a chance to respond. I had tossed the marker back and ran into the gym.

“What the hell took you so long!?” Zoe asked sourly, as I ran up to take my spot beside her. “I told coach you were PMSing. You're lucky I'm your best friend!” Zoe isn't mean but she has sass. She's been my best friend for as long as I can remember. We are practically sisters.

We left the gym and did our routines on the field over and over that night, watching the football game. It seemed to last forever. Honestly, I would rather be on the field playing football than cheering on the sidelines. After our teams' victory, Brandon ran across the field to where Zoe and I were standing. He wrapped his arms around my waist and lifted me off the ground spinning me around. I was laughing and yelling at him to put me down until he finally did. He kissed my cheek and intertwined his fingers with mine, pulling me along behind him. I wasn't really all that fond of the guy, but he seemed happy and I wasn't too inclined on ruining the big win for him. I looked over to the stands and saw that most of the crowd was already gone. I saw the guy I had run into earlier, though. He was standing under the stands. He was looking right at me. I felt self conscious all of a sudden and pulled back on Brandon's hand.

"What's wrong?" he asked turning to face me, and planting another kiss on my cheek. He had the biggest grin on his face.

"Why are you taking me to the guys' locker room?" I laughed.

"Well I saw you change...I only thought it'd be fair..." he said jokingly. At least I hoped he was joking.

"Zoe is waiting for me. She's my ride to the party. See you there?" He nodded and kissed my cheek one last time before letting go of my hand. The guy was no longer under the stands. He was gone. I shrugged it off and ran back across the field over to where Zoe had parked.

As soon as I had climbed into the passenger seat Zoe said, "I thought for sure you were just going to ride with Brandon. You two seem to be really hitting it off." She smirked and cocked her head to the side, studying me.

"It's just adrenaline. He's just excited because they won. Don't turn this into something it's not." Zoe pursed her lips to avoid saying anything else. I dug my phone out of my cheer bag that was in the back seat and saw that I had a text from an unknown number.

It read, 'Hey Kaylee, we just met...you were going to tell me about this party?' I replied back with just the address and a smiley face.

"Who's that?" Zoe asked, keeping her eyes on the road as she drove to the house the party was at.

"Emily," I lied, telling her it was one of the girls on our squad.

"What does she want?" Zoe asked, believing the lie completely.

"She just wanted to make sure we were both going to the party." I felt bad lying to her. And to be honest, I wasn't sure why I was. Zoe just nodded.

The party was at a house that was rather close to the school and we got there shortly after leaving the game. The house was lit up. Every light was flipped on and each window was left glowing in the dark night. The moon was hidden behind the clouds so this house was the best source of light in the neighborhood.

"Oh my gawd," Zoe squealed. She parked the car on the road in front of the house and hopped out, leaving me to find a better parking spot. "Come find me once you park!" I hopped over into the driver's seat and watched as she ran on tip-toe up the front door. It was wide open and welcoming to everyone. Switching the gear, I made my way through the familiar neighborhood. I found a spot at the park a quarter of a mile from the party and hopped out, grabbing my phone, and started walking up the road. My phone vibrated, signaling a text. My phone didn't recognize the number as a contact but I knew who it was. The boy I had run into earlier. I still didn't know his name.

The message read, 'I'm here...where do I park?' I replied, telling him to come to the park like I did. I turned around and jogged back to Zoe's truck. I hopped up and sat on the hood while I waited.

"Kaylee?" Someone asked from behind me. I nearly jumped out of my skin. I turned to face the boy. He grinned. "Did I scare you?"

I hopped down, laughing and said, "No, not a chance!" Then I remembered, "We have a slight problem."

"And what's that?" he asked not looking too concerned.

"I still don't know your name," I said smiling again. This boy could make me smile like no other.

"Really?" he asked, laughing. It seemed like he didn't believe me. Should I know his name? "Want to go to that party now?"

I looked at him questioningly. "What's your name?"

"Louis," he said as if it were obvious.

"Why was that so hard to tell me?" I asked not understanding what was going on. "Is it like a secret? Do you not let people know your name?"

"Oh trust me, it's no secret!" he laughed. "Let's go." He put his hand on the small of my back and pushed me gently in the direction of the party house.

I wasn't sure exactly what he meant, but I felt comfortable going with him none the less. "So where are you from?" I asked, breaking the silence of the night that surrounded us.

He looked at me, hesitating for a moment and then replied with, "Doncastor, England," he said looking at me with interest. We arrived to the front door of the house. It was wide open and there was a basket outside the door with a sign that said, 'Wear your masks!' I hadn't brought one and neither had Louis. I grabbed two from the basket and handed one to him smiling. We both put them on and then made our way inside, where the music was louder than any live concert I've ever been to.

"Do you drink?" He asked, leading me to the kitchen by my hand.

"Sure, mostly just at these parties though." He opened a beer and dumped it into two cups, handing one to me. Brandon came up behind me just then and wrapped his arms around my middle. He took my cup from my hand and set it on the counter and begin planting wet kisses along my neck while I tried to squirm out of his hold. It was impossible to do. He traced my law line with his lips and slipped his hands under the hem of my shirt. "Brandon," I tried to yell, but my voice cracked. He didn't stop. "Brandon! Don't touch me!" I yelled and shoved him away from me.

"Aww, come on, Kaylee. Why do you have to be such a prude?" he asked, striding towards me. By now the music had been turned down and people were watching. "I'm just trying to have a little fun." He put his hands on my hips and pulled me roughly towards him. He started kissing my neck again and I wasn't strong enough to do anything about it.

"Brandon, stop! Don't touch me you filthy asshole," I tried to push him away again, with no use. Louis came up behind him and tapped on his shoulder. Brandon turned around, amused. Louis had a small frame and appeared to have less muscle mass compared to Brandon. "Louis, please don't," I whispered, giving my new friend a pleading look.

"Can I help you?" Brandon asked.

"Yeah, step back some, will ya?" Louis didn't sound threatening, just calm.

"And what are you going to do if I don't?" Brandon asked, more amused than before.

"Just step back and we won't have to worry about that," Louis waited a few seconds before reaching for my hand. I held on tight to him and he pulled me away from Brandon. For whatever reason, Brandon made no move to stop me from leaving. Louis pulled me out of the kitchen and then tucked me under his arm and led me out of the house.

"Want to get out of here?" he whispered. I nodded. We could go anywhere else. I didn't want to be at this party any longer.

We walked back to the park where his truck was and we sat in it for a while. "Want me to take you home?" he asked after a minute.

"I told my mom I would be at Zoe's tonight, so I can't go home or they'll know something's wrong." I was trying to come up with a plan for the night.

"Stay with me," Louis offered.

"I'd love to, stranger," I laughed, thinking he was joking. When he said nothing more I added, "You can't be serious?"

"Completely. I just saved you from a rapist back there...how bad can I be?" he laughed and looked to me for an answer.

"Maybe if I could just hang out at your place for a few hours then I could go to Zoe's or something?" I didn't really want to be alone right now.

"Whatever you'd prefer," he said starting up his truck. I pulled out my phone and texted Zoe to tell her that a friend would drop me off at her place later.

"So, why are you doing this, being nice to me for no reason?" I asked after a few minutes of silently driving down the road.

He didn't answer right away. "You seem different from the rest of the girls I meet. You're not swooning over me, for one."

"Wow. That sounded a bit cocky," I laughed. "What are you like some famous guy that gets all the ladies?"

"Alright, what are you trying to pull?" he asked sounding amused, but maybe slightly annoyed too.

"Me? What are you talking about?" I was laughing out of confusion, more than anything else.

"You know that I'm in a boy band, yes?"

"How would I know that? We just met.." I was at a loss of words.

"Maybe because this boy band is one of the most popular in the nation. Do you live under a rock?" he was nearly shouting at me.

"I - I'm sorry that I don't know who you are."

"Louis. From One Direction. Is this a joke?" Before I had time to process what he'd just told me, or to reply, he veered into the wrong lane and the oncoming traffic flipped our vehicle. The seat belt was digging into my chest and Louis' hand was holding fast to my thigh. The car was flipping end to end and neither of us could do anything. I heard screaming, loud and piercing. Only later did I realize I was the one screaming.